Coalition Space is opening at 1660 Lincoln St. in downtown Denver. (Courtesy Coalition Space)
Spencer Rothschild thinks coworking has bottomed out.
Industry giant WeWork, of course, is bankrupt. A coworking firm’s downtown Denver tower is in receivership. And local coworking pioneer Galvanize has exited the coworking industry locally.
Spencer Rothschild
But the CEO of New York-based Coalition Space thinks the industry has a bright future. Coalition will open its first Denver location this January.
“I think in the rearview mirror is the bottom,” Rothschild said. “WeWork makes the headlines … but there are a lot of coworking companies that are very very successful right now and at capacity.”
Coalition has taken the 16th floor at 1660 Lincoln St. downtown. The 16,000-square-foot space will have 18 private offices, open desk space, large conference rooms and additional space for growth.
“I’m realistic,” he said. “We’re not going to open and have a waitlist like we would if it was 2015, but I think the location and what we live for and what the building offers will differentiate us.”
He said Coalition offers a variety of leases, such as renting a few days of the month or only Mondays. The new location will also have amenities like a game room and includes gym access.
“The way people are working is changing and we’re not sitting here thinking we’ll sell the old product,” he said. “If we don’t meet the worker or teams where they want, then we shouldn’t be in this business.”
He said the average person or business signs a lease with Coalition for roughly six months, but ends up extending up to three years.
Coalition itself doesn’t have a traditional lease with its landlord but a revenue share, Rothschild said, which it does at all of its locations. He declined to disclose specifics of the agreement.
The company was founded in 2002 in New York before expanding to New Jersey and Chicago. Rothschild said he decided to sell its leases in Chicago and scale the company back in 2018 and 2019, which ended up helping Coalition survive the pandemic.
“We know how lucky we were. We didn’t sense the bigger picture but certainly sensed other challenges in the market that made us want to retreat a little bit,” he said. “But now we’re in growth mode, and it’s amazing.”
Rothschild said it will likely expand further into the Denver market, and is considering opening in markets such as Washington, Boston and even reopening in Chicago.
“We see coworking … growing to 30 percent of the real estate market,” he said. “We think there will be a coworking operator in every building.”
Coalition Space is opening at 1660 Lincoln St. in downtown Denver. (Courtesy Coalition Space)
Spencer Rothschild thinks coworking has bottomed out.
Industry giant WeWork, of course, is bankrupt. A coworking firm’s downtown Denver tower is in receivership. And local coworking pioneer Galvanize has exited the coworking industry locally.
Spencer Rothschild
But the CEO of New York-based Coalition Space thinks the industry has a bright future. Coalition will open its first Denver location this January.
“I think in the rearview mirror is the bottom,” Rothschild said. “WeWork makes the headlines … but there are a lot of coworking companies that are very very successful right now and at capacity.”
Coalition has taken the 16th floor at 1660 Lincoln St. downtown. The 16,000-square-foot space will have 18 private offices, open desk space, large conference rooms and additional space for growth.
“I’m realistic,” he said. “We’re not going to open and have a waitlist like we would if it was 2015, but I think the location and what we live for and what the building offers will differentiate us.”
He said Coalition offers a variety of leases, such as renting a few days of the month or only Mondays. The new location will also have amenities like a game room and includes gym access.
“The way people are working is changing and we’re not sitting here thinking we’ll sell the old product,” he said. “If we don’t meet the worker or teams where they want, then we shouldn’t be in this business.”
He said the average person or business signs a lease with Coalition for roughly six months, but ends up extending up to three years.
Coalition itself doesn’t have a traditional lease with its landlord but a revenue share, Rothschild said, which it does at all of its locations. He declined to disclose specifics of the agreement.
The company was founded in 2002 in New York before expanding to New Jersey and Chicago. Rothschild said he decided to sell its leases in Chicago and scale the company back in 2018 and 2019, which ended up helping Coalition survive the pandemic.
“We know how lucky we were. We didn’t sense the bigger picture but certainly sensed other challenges in the market that made us want to retreat a little bit,” he said. “But now we’re in growth mode, and it’s amazing.”
Rothschild said it will likely expand further into the Denver market, and is considering opening in markets such as Washington, Boston and even reopening in Chicago.
“We see coworking … growing to 30 percent of the real estate market,” he said. “We think there will be a coworking operator in every building.”
